ENVIRONMENTAL DEFENCE, OIL CHANGE INTERNATIONAL
New Report Shows Canada is the Worst Public Financier of Fossil Fuels in the G20
Toronto | Treaty Lands and Territory of the Mississaugas of the Credit First Nation, and the traditional territory of the Anishinaabeg, the Haudenosaunee, and the Wendat – New research by Oil Change International reveals that Canada is badly out of step with other G20 countries when it comes to using public finance to build a cleaner, more affordable energy system.
“PM Carney promised repeatedly that he would not spend public dollars on a new pipeline. Yet last week, he betrayed Canadians by announcing his government would, in fact, spend tens of billions of public funds for another oil pipeline,” said Aly Hyder Ali, Oil and Gas Senior Program Manager at Environmental Defence. “This new research confirms that Canada is the worst provider of fossil financing in the G20. If profitable oil companies are unwilling to gamble on risky new projects, Canadians should not be forced to do it either.”
The report finds that Canada’s public banks provided CAD $18.2 billion per year for fossil fuels in 2022 to 2024, the highest in the G20 by far. That is 19 times Canada’s financing for renewable energy projects, which totalled $975 million per year during the same period. Meanwhile, most G20 countries already use their public banks to finance more renewables than fossil fuels. Brazil, Germany, the UK, and Mexico are using public banks to phase out fossil fuels and steer financing toward affordable renewable energy systems.
Key Findings:
- Canada’s public banks provided $18.2 billion per year for fossil fuels from 2022 to 2024, making Canada by far the largest public fossil fuel financier in the G20. Most of this was for the TMX expansion pipeline.
- In the same period, Canada provided just $975 million per year for renewable energy, which is 19 times less than its support for fossil fuels.
- Export Development Canada was responsible for 99 per cent of the fossil fuel finance identified in Canada. Other institutions covered in the report include the Business Development Bank of Canada (BDC), Canada Development Investment Corporation (CDEV), Canada Infrastructure Bank (CIB), and the Canada Growth Fund.
- Most of the other G20 countries are using their public banks to finance more renewables than fossil fuels, with almost $53 billion annually for renewables compared to $40 billion for fossil fuels between 2016 and 2024.
- Countries such as Brazil, Germany, the United Kingdom and Mexico are using their public banks as powerful tools to shape and steer economies towards affordable renewable energy systems.
Last week, the federal government opened the door to a new publicly financed oil sands pipeline to Canada’s west coast that could leave Canadians on the hook for anywhere between $35 billion to $100 billion. With 90 per cent public ownership, the new pipeline has no credible path forward without massive subsidies, while critical infrastructure projects like the East-West electricity grid and public transit remain underfunded.
“There is growing international attention on public banks because of their ability to invest in the public good instead of chasing short-term returns. Canada’s new oil pipeline announcement means it is set to remain an outlier using public banks to line oil executives’ pockets instead.” said Bronwen Tucker, Global Public Finance Manager at Oil Change International and one of the report authors.
“Every dollar spent propping up a sunsetting fossil fuel industry is a dollar not spent on advancing the clean energy transition that Canadians actually need,” said Hyder Ali. “While the world races towards cheaper renewable energy, Canada continues to double down on oil and gas, leaving Canadians vulnerable to geopolitical and economic volatility. If PM Carney continues down this path, Canada will get left behind.”
Additional Information
- The new report examines 7,800 transactions from 54 G20 institutions between 2016 and 2024. In Canada, this included Business Development Bank of Canada (BDC), Canada Development Investment Corporation (CDEV), Export Development Canada (EDC) Canada Infrastructure Bank (CIB), and the Canada Growth Fund.
- The data is available for download on Oil Change International’s energyfinance.org database. Our data is free and publicly available to make sure G20 governments can be held accountable to their promises to build a liveable and just future.
- The figures included in the report only capture fossil fuel financing from public financial institutions and do not include direct subsidies, which Environmental Defence tracks for Canada as part of a series of annual reports.
ABOUT ENVIRONMENTAL DEFENCE (environmentaldefence.ca): Environmental Defence is a leading Canadian environmental advocacy organization that works with government, industry and individuals to defend clean water, a safe climate and healthy communities.
ABOUT OIL CHANGE INTERNATIONAL (oilchange.org): Oil Change International is a research, communications, and advocacy organization working to expose the true costs of fossil fuels and facilitate the ongoing transition to clean energy.
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For more information or to request an interview, please contact:
Midhat Moini, Environmental Defence, media@environmentaldefence.ca
Khaliel Moses, Oil Change International – khaliel@oilchange.org
